Bangladesh News

Dhaka University (DU) teachers seeking immediate release of all university teachers and students detained and convicted in connection with August’s campus violence will take classes today wearing black badges.

The teachers also decided to bring out a silent procession on the campus tomorrow as part of their ongoing programme protesting against Tuesday’s verdict placing four Rajshahi University (RU) teachers to two years’ rigorous imprisonment.

At a meeting of the Dhaka University Teachers’ Association (Duta) on Friday, the teachers issued an ultimatum to the government to release all detained and convicted DU and RU teachers and students by December 12.

This is the second time during the rule of this caretaker government that the DU teachers are wearing black badges. Earlier, they staged a similar protest following the arrest of Awami League President Sheikh Hasina.

Meanwhile, three army officers met DU Vice Chancellor Prof SMA Faiz and Duta representatives yesterday and requested them to consider their decision of wearing black ribbons.

Duta Acting President Prof Tazmeri SA Islam, its former president and general secretary Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique and Prof Muhammad Akhtaruzzaman were present at the meeting.

Prof Faiz said the meeting was held in a congenial atmosphere and was fruitful. “The army personnel and we all think that this issue should be solved urgently,” he said.

Prof Tazmeri said, “They [the government] are positive about the release of the detained teachers of Dhaka University and are working on it.”

There was, however, no specific date for the release, she said, adding that the meeting only discussed the release of DU teachers, not anything about the convicted RU teachers and detained DU students.

Asked if they will now postpone or cancel today’s programme, Tazmeri said, “The Duta is supposed to take a decision in this regard by evening.”

Later, when contacted at 7:00pm she said there was still no development towards postponement or cancellation of the programme.

Four teachers of Dhaka University and six of Rajshahi University and nine DU students were detained during August 20-22 following violence on the two campuses sparked by army personnel’s beating up of three DU students during a football match on August 20.

The detained DU teachers are Duta President Prof Sadrul Amin, Duta General Secretary Prof Anwar Hossain, Science Faculty Dean Prof Harun-or-Rashid and Applied Physics Department Chairman Prof Neem Chandra Bhowmik.

The convicted four RU teachers are Moloy Kumar Bhoumik of management department, Dulal Chandra Biswas, Sayed Selim Reza Newton and Abdullah Al Mamun of mass communication department.